Shadows of Leaves
by RoseleafISHTAR
Summary: "No cat is safe. The forest will fall to it's own shadows..." Warriors AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Hola everyone! I warn you, this is a Warriors-Yugioh crossover fic, so if you don't know the basics about the warriors books, you may want to find out about them before you read this. To be brief, they are cats living in a shared stretch of rural area. There are four clans, Thunderclan, Riverclan, Shadowclan, and Windclan. No clan can hunt in each other's territory. Queen means pregnant cat/mother, and I think everything else should be easy to guess XD**

THISISALINEDAMMIT

_The forest is a dangerous place. Secrets hide in the shadows of leaves._

_And no cat can run fast enough._

DAMMITWHYAREN'TTHEYLINEBREAKERSWORKING

He woke up gasping. Yet another night of seeing things flit in and out of the shadows, eyes watching him from every spot as the sound of the flooding river crashed behind him.

_Drip._

A droplet of cold water landing right in the middle of his snowy head.

'_Well no wonder I was dreaming about floods, it's raining! Gosh, to a Windclan cat, one drop might seem like the whole river!'_

The snowy white cat got out of his nest, stretching softly. His long tail lightly brushed against the cool stone wall of the medicine cat's den. Making his trek out into the cold rain, the tom ran for the nearest bush to hide under. A gray she cat greeted him with a flick of the tail. "Hello Ryou!"

The cat smiled back with shining chocolate eyes. "Hello, Miho."

Miho gestured to her rabbit, licking her lips of the taste of prey. "Would you like some rabbit?"

Ryou shrugged, not exactly partial to the rabbit that were bountiful in his grassy territory. "No thanks. I'm going to go grab a sparrow."

The gray cat gave him a pouty look, but Ryou forced himself to ignore it and turn away, heading back through the rain to the fresh kill pile. As medicine cat apprentice, he could never take a mate or have kits. Not that he really wanted Miho as a mate…she was a nice cat, but didn't appeal to him, and was much to vain to be a very good queen.

As soon as Ryou picked a dry bird out of the slightly soggy pile, an echo rang out around the camp. "Windclan hunters, gather under the Windy Cliff!"

In the center of the camp, on the high ledge of a rocky cliff, a thin silver cat stood, head raised high. As the leader of Windclan, and his own uncle, Ryou automatically recognized the wary look in Pegasus's eyes. Behind him, his mentor Zigfreid stood with an equally worried expression.

The rest of the clan was slowly coming out of their dens into the drizzle, thin, lean cats clustering around the cliff. Pegasus observed them slowly before he began.

"Warriors and Queens, our medicine cat has had a dream from Starclan!" the silver cat bellowed. Cats under him exchanged glances and hushed whispers as their leader paused.

Ryou's eyes widened. Had his mentor had the same dream as he did?

"Zigfreid has informed me of a dream of the forest, with eyes watching, and the river flooding in a horrible storm! We've come to the conclusion that the dream is not one of the elements, but one of the other clans! With out dispute over the gully by the river last Greenleaf, Riverclan still may find reason to attack us! We must be on the look out for any of their hunters, and take caution ourselves when hunting." Pegasus turned tail, lowering his head slightly as he sighed. "This meeting is over. Please return to your duties."

As the rest of his clan dispersed, Ryou tentatively snuck up to the leader's place of announcement. The sleek, thin cats sliding around the young, snowy cat made him feel so out of place. His body was curved and plump and sturdy, unlike the sharp, angular frames of his clanmates.

"Uhm…Zigfreid? Pegasus?"

The two toms turned to him. "Yes, Ryou? What is wrong, young one?"

The snowy tom scuffed his paws on the sandy ground as his reddish mentor looked at him with his narrow silver eyes. "I uh…I shared your dream, last night…I don't doubt your communications with Starclan, but what could the eyes in the forest mean? Don't you think-"

"I can't know that yet, Ryou." Zigfreid sighed. His tail twitched irritably. "Starclan will reveal it in time, trust me." The light red medicine cat stalked off, leaving Ryou to flatten his ears in embarrassment.

"Don't take it to heart, Ryou." From behind him, Pegasus lightly brushed his shoulder. The older cat's eyes narrowed against the sun peaking through the clouds. "Zigfreid is just feeling the affects of an aging cat- as if he didn't act like enough of an elder when he was young." The leader flicked his tail softly, beckoning to his deputy from across the camp. As the lithe brown cat trotted forward, Pegasus nuzzled Ryou away softly. "Just take some time to gather some herbs, get yourself out of the camp for a little."

The sandy entrance to the camp was wet from the passed rain, making the rocky grains stick to his white paws. Letting out a growl, the tom cat bounded away, past the training apprentices and onto the moor. He did not slow, only got faster until finally, his paws slipped in the mud. What Ryou didn't notice, is that when he slid, he was nearly on the edge of the gorge. As he fought to stand up in the mud, the crack of rock resounded around the open moor. Before he could do a thing, the ground dropped out from under him, plunging him into the raging waters below.

FUCKINGLINE.

"Dammit, Akefia!"

The white cat shook his fur of the leaves caught in it, water shaking easily from his slick pelt. At his left, a burly tom laughed past the fallen branch in his mouth used to push his friend in the river.

"Oh give it up Bakura, you're the worst at catching fish in the clan!"

"Who cares?" The smaller tom spat. "I'm good at catching enemy cats, like you!" He launched himself at the bigger warrior, bowling him over with a speedy pounce. Just as he was about to swipe the smug grin right off Akefia's face, there was a crash, the sound of large rocks plunging into water.

And a cat's yowl.

"Akefia, did you hear that?"

The red, brown and white cat's ears perked. "Yeah! It sounded like the edge of the gorge collapsed." Akefia wriggled out from under the snowy white cat, bounding forward. Bakura followed in quick second, easily catching up as they reached the falls.

Floating in the rapids among chunks of loose soil and was a snowy white cat. Akefia growled. "That Windclan cat is going to drown!"

And they both knew just who that Windclan cat was. Ryou, the young medicine cat.

It didn't even take a second thought when Bakura made his decision. "Akefia, come on!" He threw himself off the edge. The rough rapids hit him hard, and even a Riverclan cat would have a difficult time swimming through the current. Bakura's throat clenched as Ryou got closer to the edge of the waterfall. He paddled his paws harder, grabbing on to Ryou's scruff just in time to topple over the falls with him. For a moment that felt like a whole moon, they were suspended in air, before they hit the surface of the water, hard. The initial shock forced Bakura to let go of the snowy Windclan cat. He vaguely heard Akefia's yowl from the bank of the river as he fought to keep his head underwater.

'_Oh Starclan, I've lost sight of Ryou!'_

The current grew more calm as he went, flailing in the water to find the smaller white cat. Support beams from the wooden Twoleg bridge gave him a surface to dig his claws into. Just ahead of him, Akefia was dragging a limp white body out of the water.

The Windclan medicine cat had been saved.

RAWRI'MASPORK. (line)

Waterlogged and tired, Bakura and Akefia trekked back to the camp in the middle of the island. Their leader had already gotten his warriors to gather up the snowy Windclanner and rush him to the medicine cat's den.

"That was a close one, Bakura." Sighed Akefia. He flicked his damp tail across Bakura's shoulder. "But you know we have to stay away from him…We can't have anyone finding out our connection to him."

They were greeted with joyous yowls as soon as they got in the camp. A blue-white cat, sleek and proud, stood ahead of them. His deep voice purred. "Very good thinking, my warriors. Capturing Windclan's young medicine cat apprentice will put them in our debt."

Akefia bowed his head. "Any good warrior would have took the opportunity for the good of his clan, Dartz. Has someone been sent to alert Pegasus of Ryou's arrival?"

"Of course. Go rest- you're heroes among your clanmates- maybe that will help you catch a couple of she cats." Dartz walked off, luckily taking that disgusting smirk that bothered Bakura so much with him. He was left with the narrow eyes of his deputy Raphael, before the yellow cat turned away.

The smaller warrior cautiously poked his head into the woven entrance of the medicine cat's den. The young Windclan cat lay peacefully in a mossy nest, the little apprentice fussing over him as she chewed up borage leaves. Bakura rolled his eyes and stalked off into the warriors den where his brother already lay, licking his pelt clean. His nest next to Akefia's was decorated with black and blood red rocks, and one in the middle that glittered even more than the Moonstone, in vibrant colors of green and dripping blood. He lay his head on his paws, staring at it until his eyes slowly drooped.

Strange scents filled his nose. Riverclan? Was this another dream? The rain must have started again, because his snowy pelt was once again wet. He could remember the sensation of drowning…

Ryou's eyes shot open. His surroundings were unfamiliar. As soon as he tried to get up, a light paw on his back stopped him. He turned to see a young brown tabby, forest green eyes looking widely back at him.

"Please, stay still! You fell of the edge of the gorge. You're in Riverclan territory, but it's okay."

"Maple? Is he awake?"

Ryou melted at the sound of a familiar voice. From his trips to the Moonstone every quarter moon, he came to know this deep she cat voice. "Mai?"

The pale she cat stepped out of her storage area, talking past a bundle of leaf-wrapped yarrow. "Hello Ryou. You took quite a spill there. You're lucky Akefia and Bakura were able to get their paws on you before Starclan could."

Akefia? Who was-

"Eep!" Ryou fell back in his nest as his searching brought him face to face with a huge, fluffy tom. He smirked in amusement. Across his left eye, the was a scar, merging with two others under it.

"You sound quite like a squirrel, Windclan kit." The big tom purred. Mai cuffed his ears as she bound over, puffing out her fluffy chest.

"Akefia, get out of my den unless you want a nice bit of yarrow spread on your fish while you're not looking!" She growled haughtily.

"Dartz sent me." The cat, evidently named Akefia, spat back in a-matter-of-fact tone. "We can't trust someone from _Windclan_, even if he's your little buddy."

Her ears flattened against her head, Mia whirled around. "Fine! While you're here, you can go help Maple change Alister's bedding!"

"It doesn't need changed!" Growled another Riverclan cat. Ryou turned to see a red cat laying in a nest a couple foxlengths away from him, cobwebs covering a wound on his white belly. Akefia growled.

"Oh shut up and move your kittypet rump!"

Frustrated, Ryou laid his head down, trying hard to block everything out. Hopefully, Pegasus would be here soon to take him back to camp.

LINEFORTHELOVEOFRA

Wind rustled through the marshes, carrying a slight warmth with it as a promise of greenleaf after the harsh leafbare. Breathing slowed as his prey crept nearer, following the littering of plants across the swampy ground. In an instant, mud went flying as he propelled himself towards his prey. The squirrel didn't make it a pawstep before he dug his fangs into it's neck, ending it's life swiftly.

A streak of yellow made him look up. Only two cats in Shadowclan had yellow pelts…

The strong scent of Malik came just before the cat was behind him.

"Good catch, Rishid."

The tabby shrugged, dropping the squirrel on a dry patch of ground. "It wasn't that great, Malik-sama." He winced as Malik passed, the yellow cat purposefully brushing his tail across the surface of his scars.

"But you've already caught half the clan's prey today." The sunny-coated tom shook his head. "Some of these cats are so lazy, Rishid…and yet they wonder why I get so much attention from our leader. "

"They are jealous of you, Malik-sama…They don't deserve it like you do, yet they yearn for it." murmured Rishid quietly. From the beginning, he learned when to act like Malik's brother, and when to act like Malik's slave. He wasn't sure which one was true and which one was the lie anymore.

The blonde cat smiled. "Good you understand, my brother. Now come, Zorc is calling for us back at camp."

"Why?" Rishid asked curiously.

"Because," Malik purred. "The deputy was found dead. He's already picking the next one."

**IMBOUTTIREDATHISSHIZZNAT. LIIIIIINE!**

**Hope you guys enjoy ;D**

**HAD TO EDIT IT THREE FRIGGIN TIMES.**


	2. Chapter 2

**This idea has been bothering me so much, so I'll probably end up updating it a lot XD I know I should be working on other stuff but…well, what can I say?**

This sentence serves as a line. Apparently, doesn't like straight things.

The sun shone brightly in his fur, gentle and pleasing after the morning's cold rain. Two cats, a scruffy golden tom and a long legged brown cat jumped around in a mock fight in front of him.

"Yugi!"

The apprentice's ears perked. As he turned, a pretty brown she cat bounded up.

"Hi Anzu!" the short, tri colored cat purred. She smiled sweetly back at him then turned to her rough-playing friends.

"Jou! Hiroto!"

The two tom cats paused mid swipe. "Huh?" The golden cat turned, maneuvering around his companion's tail to see who was speaking. "What is it, Anzu?"

"Stop fighting, you're going to get dirt all over the fresh kill pile!" The she cat spat sternly. The two toms separated, Jou padded over to his short friend.

"Hey, short stuff!" The nickname got him a cuff over the ears by Anzu, but Yugi just smiled.

"Hi Jou! How is your first day as a warrior going?" the apprentice purred. He was a lot less powerful than Hiroto and Jou, so he'd been held back from his warrior ceremony for a while, much to his dismay.

"He's acting more like a kit than a warrior!" Hiroto spat playfully.

The golden cat bristled. "You started, you stole my mouse!"

"See! Ki~it!"

Yugi rolled his eyes as the newly initiated warriors began their fight again. The forest loomed just beyond the ravine, tempting him. Apprentices could not go into the forest without their mentors unless sent by their leaders on a border patrol or hunting party, and Yugi's mentor was off on patrol. He sighed softly.

Anzu's ears perked slightly. "Hmm? Yugi, what's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing." The apprentice murmured. His amethyst eyes strayed back to the scent filled trees. "I hope Yami sends me out on a hunting patrol today."

A brown tail flicked across his nose. "Yugi, you know your brother has a duty as deputy to protect and feed the clan. It wouldn't be responsible to send you out-"

"And why not?" Yugi spat harshly. "Because I'm the runt of the litter?"

Anzu was only trying to help…why did he yell at her? Guiltily, Yugi bowed his head to the warrior. "I-I'm sorry Anzu, I don't know what came over me."

"It's alright, Yugi." The she cat murmured quietly. Taking a quick survey of her surroundings, the mouse colored cat leaned in to whisper in his ear. "I'll take you out into the forest today."

This isn't the greatest line in the world. It's only a tribute.

Despite the gnawing of guilt in his belly, Yugi couldn't deny going out into the forest with his friends. Hiroto and Jounouchi had tagged along with him and Anzu, putting them back together again like they had been when they were all still training.

The strong scent of squirrel wafted from the trunk of a birch tree. On one of it's gnarled roots, the bushy tailed piece of prey sat nibbling on an acorn. Yugi stopped as his friends trotted on. He was downwind of it…

Perfect opportunity for a catch.

Only a mouselength away, the tri colored cat lunged. His friends turned just in time to see him.

"Yugi, wait!"

And they also saw the badger on the other side of the tree.

The squirrel hopped away, and Yugi was left straight in the path of a frightened, aggressive badger. Yugi yowled as the badger lunged at him, hot, stinky breath right on him. He jumped away from it's snapping jaws, momentarily struck with fear.

'_Come on Yugi, think like a warrior!'_

He slashed the badger across the muzzle, kicking out at it's left side with a kick and an angered hiss. Jou bounded forward.

"Yugi, run!"

Pain coursed through him as teeth sunk deep into his leg. He lunged at the lumbering animal, sinking his teeth into it's scruff and shaking. He could feel the badger swipe blindly at his leg, claws nearly hitting his leg.

'_What have I gotten myself into?'_

The badger let go of him. Yugi fell to the forest floor, blood oozing from his leg as he struggled to get up, to help Hiroto and Jounouchi fight. He wouldn't let his friends get hurt when this was his fault!

Suddenly, through all the noise and pain and confusion, Yugi could clearly see the tri colored look alike fly out of the trees, tackling the badger with a tremendous amount of force. Yami!

With the weight of three toms on it, the badger squirmed, throwing them all off before lumbering away. Yugi's head spun, and he couldn't make out one thing from another, just the eyes of his savior and his friends boring down on him before the whole forest turn black.

This line is much bigger than yours, this line could walk right through that door!

_Violet eyes looked down at him, two pairs so opposite yet burning the same- with violence and passion, hatred and anger, fear and sorrow._

_Drowning._

_His paws flailed, but these shadows were unlike others- they had weight, crushed him, forced him down into the cold, murky water, yet the haunting eyes still stared into him._

_Drowning…And Starclan's light didn't shine here._

_This was the end, and his soul wouldn't be at peace._

"Rishid!"

He jumped up with a snarl. Slowly blinking his eyes, they narrowed to slits, adjusting to the sun directly in front of him as it set over the gnarled trees.

Malik moved to the front of him, tail lashing. "Rishid, you fell asleep! You can't sleep during a ceremony!"

"I'm sorry Master Malik." The older tabby stammered softly. He stretched out his legs, trying to shake the tiredness threatening to overcome him. This wasn't just a piece of moss he could flick off his pelt. He needed sleep…

But Malik needed him.

A massive black cat stood tall across the fallen stump, apparently already having called a meeting. How had Rishid slept through Zorc's deep, bellowing voice?

"In the event of Anubis's death," growled the leader emotionlessly. "the time has come for the new deputy of Shadowclan to be chosen!"

Beside him, Malik stiffened, though Rishid was sure the whole clan was. Unable to concentrate, the tom let his olive drift across the camp, surveying the growing shadows cast by dens and the trees surrounding them, shrouding them in darkness…

Suddenly, something dawned on the older cat. He could always be seen doing one of two things- clinging loyally to his Master…

Or fighting his brother.

Mariku was no where to be seen. Usually, the bigger yellow cat would sit right behind Rishid and Malik, close enough that they could feel every twitch of his tail, and the dangerous, violent mauve eyes glaring at them.

But those eyes weren't on him tonight. Rishid looked around, the nervous feeling rising as bile in his throat. Mariku was not sitting next to Isis, or any of the few companions he had made in his lifetime…

"This cat has been chosen for his cunning and strength, just what we need to make Shadowclan great!"

'_No!'_ Malik took notice that Rishid stiffened, but the tabby didn't care. Soon enough, Malik would know…

"The new deputy of Shadowclan is Mariku!"


	3. Bonus Chapter: Alligiences

A/N: Wow, is it possible to be any more lazy than me? God, I forgot I even had a fan fiction account! But, for all your waiting, guess what you get- a crap assed bonus chapter! YAY!

Seriously, I really don't get why you guys liked this- looking back, my writing style really did suck…it still does, but not to this level…Anyways, yeah, the Allegiances page! I know some of my reviewers said they haven't read the Warriors books, and if you haven't, this might not seem as cool to you as the people that have :P Who wants to bet that the formatting fucks up so badly that I get kicked straight off of fanfiction?

(Some of the characters are totally made up and never show up in the fic, btw)

Allegiances

**Thunderclan**

Leader:

Seto dark brown tabby tom with blue eyes

Deputy:

Yami red, yellow, and black calico tom with amethyst eyes

Medicine Cat:

Shadi furless tan tom with strange black markings

Apprentice, Shizuka

Warriors: (_toms and she-cats without kits_)

Jounouchi golden tom with honey colored eyes

Honda long legged brown tom with amber eyes

Anzu dusky brown she-cat with blue eyes

Rainy small gray tabby with blue eyes

Apprentice, Yugi

Mahaado tall brown tom with blue eyes

Apprentice, Mana

Corry orange and white tom with green eyes

Apprentice, Rebecca

Alex white tom with copper eyes and gray flecks

Apprentice, Mokuba

Apprentices: (_cats over six moons, in training to become warriors_)

Yugi short red, black, and yellow calico with lavender eyes, Yami's brother

Mana brown she cat with dark green eyes

Rebecca yellow she cat with blue eyes

Mokuba long haired black tom with blue eyes, Seto's brother

Shizuka sweet ginger she-cat with amber eyes

Queens: (_she cats expecting or nursing kits_)

Ami older brown she cat with green eyes, Yami and Yugi's mother

Elders: (_cats who have retired from their warrior duties_)

Sugaroku short, graying tom with pale amethyst eyes

Arthur graying brown tom with blue eyes

**Shadowclan**

Leader:

Zorc large black tom with red eyes

Deputy:

Mariku sandy yellow tom with odd black markings and abnormally long claws

Apprentice, Yusei

Medicine cat:

Isis smoky she cat with blue eyes

Warriors:

Malik sandy yellow tom with odd black markings and lavender eyes

Rishid large tabby tom with scars and a jet black tail, golden-green eyes, born a kittypet

Apprentice, Rose

Otogi red tom with black markings

Keith yellow tom with blue eyes

Apprentice, Ryuzaki

Strings mute white tom, gray eyes

Kozuka grayish blue tom

Satake tall black tom with brown eyes

Takaido red tom with gray eyes

Apprentice, Haga

Apprentices:

Yusei black tom with yellow markings and blue eyes

Rose tortoiseshell she cat with green eyes

Ryuzaki red and gray tom with brown eyes

Haga grayish blue tom with teal colored eyes

Queens:

Amori yellow tabby she cat with green eyes

Elders:

Karim large brown tabby tom with green eyes

**Windclan**

Leader:

Pegasus silver tom with brown eyes

Deputy:

Crochet thin brown tabby tom

Medicine Cat:

Zigfreid pinkish-red tom with blue eyes

Apprentice, Ryou

Warriors:

Miho gray tabby she cat with gray eyes

Apprentice, Jasper

Arcana gray and red tom

Apprentice, Leon

Martin light brown tabby tom

Vivian black she cat with blue eyes and yellow ears

Jules black tom with amber eyes

Apprentices:

Ryou white tom with dark brown eyes

Jasper gray and white tom with blue eyes

Leon red tom with white paws and blue eyes

Queens:

Katie pretty white and yellow she cat with hazel eyes

Melody feisty golden she cat with brown eyes, born a loner

May white and orange queen with green eyes

**Riverclan**

Leader:

Dartz bluish white tom with one gold eye, one blue eye

Deputy:

Raphael large golden tom with blue eyes

Medicine Cat:

Mai long haired yellow she cat with amethyst eyes

Apprentice, Maple

Warriors:

Bakura thin, snowy tom with red-brown eyes

Akefia white, tan, and red tom with three scars under right eye

Jaylee plump golden she cat with narrow green eyes

Valon long furred brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Alister lithe red tom with blue eyes and white underbelly

Apprentice, Gordon

Girimo scarred elderly tom with graying black fur

Misty short gray tabby she cat with blue eyes

Roza mousy brown she cat with amethyst eyes and curly fur

Apprentice, Crispen

Apprentices

Maple sweet brown she cat with golden eyes

Gordon orange tabby tom with green eyes

Crispen mean spirited brown tom with green eyes

Queens:

Hailey pretty gray and white she cat, raised Akefia and Bakura

Juniper red and black she cat, mother of Dartz's kits

Elders:

Kroze crazy old brown tom cat with blue eyes


End file.
